The productive life of a ‘political puppet’: How Jenifer Migneault may slowly be getting results

The wife a Canadian Forces veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) says she feels like she has been used as a “political puppet” in Ottawa.

Jenifer Migneault made headlines earlier this month when she chased down Veterans Affairs Minister Julian Fantino, pleading for more support for veterans’ spouses. Fantino walked hastily away from Migneault following his appearance before the Commons Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs, saying he had to get to the House for votes.

Since the incident, Migneault’s plight has drawn her into the political sphere in Ottawa. Her concerns have come up in question period several times and she even appeared before the NDP’s weekly caucus meeting June 4.

“I realize that I’m a political puppet right now,” said Migneault in a phone interview with iPolitics from her home in Farnham, Quebec. “I can feel it depending on who I talk to.”

Migneault’s husband, Claude Rainville, served as a Canadian Forces loadmaster for 20 years on C-130 Hercules transport aircraft and was diagnosed with PTSD eight years ago. She is calling on the government to recognize family caregivers like herself so they can be trained to effectively deal with the challenges related to their spouses’ PTSD.

While Migneault realizes how politicized her story has become, she said it is starting to look as though her efforts were worth it. In the recent weeks, she has met with some key decision makers in Ottawa, including Justice Minister and former defence minister Peter MacKay, Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Chief of Military Personnel Maj-Gen. David Millar, and CAF Director Military Family Services Col. Russell Mann.

“When I came out of that meeting (with the Canadian Armed Forces), for the first time I really felt all the efforts … are starting to pay off,” said Migneault. “They’re allowing me to meet other people within DND, for example in mental health. And they are open to continue the discussion.”

However, Migneault admits some meetings have felt more sincere than others.

For instance, she met with some staff members from Veterans Affairs Minister Julian Fantino’s office last Friday in Ottawa. While Migneault said she appreciated the meeting, she felt it only happened because Fantino’s office felt forced to do it. Migneault said that after briefly speaking with MacKay at the D-Day commemoration ceremony in Ottawa June 6, a group staffers from Fantino’s office — the same group of people who ignored her at the beginning of the event — approached her minutes later.

“Right after we (MacKay and Migneault) met, strangely enough, 15 to 20 minutes later, Mr. Fantino’s staff came to me and met,” she said. “These are the same people that I did pass by at the beginning of the event and I would tell them hello and they wouldn’t even look at me. They came like an hour and a half later, ‘Oh Mrs. Migneault, we tried to look for you.’ I’m sorry but this was bullshit.”

Migneault said Fantino’s chief of staff, Jacques Fauteux, spoke with her that afternoon and set up a subsequent meeting with more staff members a week later on June 13. Marie-Andrée Malette, another veteran’s spouse, sat in on the meeting as well. While Migneault said she appreciates the fact that Fantino’s office took the time to meet with her, she is still disappointed that they have not arranged a meeting between her and the minister himself.

“In the past month or so, I have met with over 100 altogether talking about this and still I cannot directly talk to the person who takes the decision. Sounds a little a bit awkward to me,” said Migneault. “I really would like to be able to sit down with him and at least for him to have the decency and the respect just to listen to my experience. I’m a going through a whole lot right now just trying to make my point.”

In response to a query from iPolitics Thursday, Fantino’s office did not indicate whether the minister intends to ever meet with Migneault. In an email, Fantino’s acting press secretary, David Pierce, said the minister’s senior staff have reached out to Migneault to ensure she is receiving all available benefits and support, but refused to comment further, citing privacy concerns.

In terms of improvements to support for veterans’ spouses, Migneault said she would like to see a parliamentary committee undertake a study on the topic. It is not clear if the government is interested in doing so at this point, as the Commons Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs just wrapped up a major report on the New Veterans Charter, which included recommendations for the well-being of veterans’ family members. However, Migneault said the committee’s report was not comprehensive enough, as it deferred spending decisions to the veterans affairs department.

The past month has been a whirlwind for Migneault and her husband.

In a rare media interview with iPolitics Thursday, Rainville said the repeated trips to Ottawa have reminded him of his days in the Canadian Forces, bringing him a sense of comfort as he continues to deal with his PTSD.

“When I go to Ottawa with Jenny, I meet a lot of veterans and it’s more like the environment I was used to in the Forces. I like government, protocol and security. When I go there, it’s more comfortable than when I’m at home,” said Rainville. “When I’m back home, my energy goes way down. I don’t go out. I don’t talk to nobody. I don’t even do the groceries.”

Rainville said he is incredibly proud of his wife for her commitment to his well-being over the years, especially in recent months with major decision makers in Ottawa. While Rainville said he feels their plea is being heard, he still hopes Fantino will meet with his wife.

Looking back, Rainville said he and his wife’s lives would probably be very different if Migneault had received more support to deal with his PTSD. The condition has drastically affected the couple’s life together. Rainville has lost touch with his two children and has been unable to work since 2006.

Migneault also had to quit her job to support her husband, which she admits has been hard on her both financially and emotionally. Her husband’s military pension is the only income they have right now.

“If you come to my home right now, you’d see that my dishwasher is not working; you’d see that my dryer hasn’t been working for the past three years; you’d see that my washer is dripping water. You’d see that my fridge is not that full.”

“Do you know how much sometimes I would love not to ask permission to have five dollars to go for a coffee with a friend?” said Migneault through tears.

Migneault and Rainville will head back to Ottawa next week to meet with DND Ombudsman Gary Walbourne and Veterans Ombudsman Guy Parent on June 25 and 26. The couple will also hold a meet and greet at the Hilton Lac Leamy in Gatineau June 28.

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6 comments on “The productive life of a ‘political puppet’: How Jenifer Migneault may slowly be getting results”

My heart goes out to you Jenifer and I admire your advocacy on behalf of wives who live with men with PTSD or serious physical injuries that are eventually compounded with mental & emotional injuries. It takes a huge toll on the family and family life becomes unbearable. Like you thousands of women give up their jobs to be full-time caregivers and our needs are never taken into consideration by the bean counters and layers of bureaucracy all designed to deny the victim and their survivors. WSIB in Ontario treats seriously injured workers & their families exactly the same way and sad to say both bureaucracies for soldiers & workers depend on us, the wives & partners. I swear these ‘systems’ are all designed by the same insurance wizards. But I want to warn you about something, and this warning only goes out to women who stay and stand by their family and don’t become a divorce statistic, which is all too often the case, whether a partner to a soldier or a worker. Your CPP is going to take such a huge hit & you will be crushed financially. After the years of free care giving to my partner until his death, this is what happened to me. The financial stress is unbelievable and anyone who hasn’t lived it truly doesn’t understand, real lives, real pain, abandoned and then marginalized, the stages of grief don’t even cover it. Poverty is not funny, that alone can bring on mild PTSD in your life and the lives of your children. I understand how hard it is to put yourself FIRST, but you must, don’t make my mistake. I wish you only the best and success.

There are likely many more Veterans like Jennifer Migneault’s and her husband’s plight of attempting to get what is their due from this government. She is to be commended for taking their fight straight to Ottawa.

Meanwhile, we have to endure the pompousness of the Harper govt, spending millions of $$$$ to change the uniforms of our military to how they looked after WW2. There is something sadly lacking in this government, when all it seems concerned about is image making, or should I say re-image making into Harper’s Canada, at the expense of Veterans, where these millions should rightly be going to instead. It is sickening to see how Harper uses our men and women in uniform as a show piece, rather than treating them with the respect and dignity they deserve and who need all the help they can get right now…not words, not platitudes, not retro uniforms that harken back to an era long gone. Harper’s Canada is all about propaganda, and is bereft of empathy for those who need the governments help the most.

Jenifer Migneault’s daily life is what more Canadians lives will be like when Stephen Harper has changed Canada beyond recognition. Its all part of the not so secret agenda on behave of our Pentecostals. There is insufficient uncontrollable stress in Canadians lives for religious dependancy. The government is the problem. Christ is the solution for life’s miseries. Tithe not tax funded safety nets is the reason to reduce tax. Misery is good. Want is good. Ignorance is good.